


The Power of Mistletoe

by twtd



Category: The Worst Witch (TV 2017), The Worst Witch - All Media Types
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Contest Entry, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-28
Updated: 2018-11-28
Packaged: 2019-09-01 22:22:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16774057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twtd/pseuds/twtd
Summary: Hecate, Pippa, and more mistletoe than the eye can see.***"Honestly, you don't find this the least bit childish?" Hecate said as she walked down one of the corridors at Pentangle's. There was a sprig of mistletoe nestled among the other festive decorations at the intersection of nearly every hallway.Pippa laughed. "Oh Hecate, they'rechildren. If they didn't occasionally do things that were childish I'd have to start worrying about them."





	The Power of Mistletoe

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2018 #HicsqueakYuleContest on tumblr!

"Honestly, you don't find this the least bit childish?" Hecate said as she walked down one of the corridors at Pentangle's. There was a sprig of mistletoe nestled among the other festive decorations at the intersection of nearly every hallway. 

Pippa laughed. "Oh Hecate, they're _children_. If they didn't occasionally do things that were childish I'd have to start worrying about them." Pippa took Hecate's hand as she led her through the corridors. She wanted to weave their fingers together but she didn't, aware that it was too intimate a thing for mere friends to do. Maybe tonight that would change though. Maybe tonight Pippa would make some progress in her quest to share her feelings with Hecate. They've barely had time to mirror each other lately with the end of the term approaching so quickly and their responsibilities taking precedence over their relationship. Pippa missed getting to speak with Hecate every night and it was that pining that convinced her that she needed to say something to the other woman sooner rather than later. She didn't want to spend years wondering if Hecate felt the same way. So she'd given herself the deadline of Yuletide to say something and it was rapidly approaching. Just a few days from now and who knew if she would even have a chance to talk to Hecate privately between now and then? No, it needed to be tonight. 

"Still, it's a fairly powerful plant. And aren't you worried about the potential for harassment?" Hecate brow was drawn down with worry, her free hand wrapped around her watch. "As my girls are so fond of reminding me, you do have boys here. Teenage boys."

"Your concern is endearing, really," Pippa said as they continued to her rooms. Butterflies erupted in her stomach as they got closer to her confession. "But we had a serious conversation about consent with both the girls and boys before we allowed them to hang up any of it. No one is getting kissed unless the explicitly allow it, and we told them the second it becomes a distraction it's all coming down. They've handled the responsibility remarkably well. And we've kept it to the brightly lit areas of the palace to discourage anything from getting out of hand with the older students. So it's really just a bit of harmless fun."

"I don't mean to question you. I simply worry. They could still use it to blow something up." Hecate shuddered at the thought. Pippa rolled her eyes good-naturedly. 

"There are a dozen things in the potions lab that they could use to blow up the school, yet outside of accidents none of them have tried it. I know for a fact that you have those same ingredients in your lab, yet Cackle's remains standing." She smiled indulgently at Hecate. She finally let go of Hecate's hand to push open the doors to her rooms. 

Her rooms were decorated just as festively at the rest of the palace, with green trimming the fireplace and a small tree sitting off to the side of the room. A small but prominent bit of mistletoe punctuated the center of the garland draped from her mantle. Their usual chairs sat by the fire, a chess set between them with two glasses and a bottle of brandy within easy reach. 

"It's infected your sitting room as well?" Hecate nodded toward the mistletoe. 

"It's _decorating_ my sitting room. And unless you're planning on sitting in the fireplace, your virtue will remain intact." Pippa's eyes danced with mirth. Hecate made the slightest of faces with Pippa's pronouncement but Pippa assumed it was because she was teasing her. Hecate took her usual seat and poured them both some brandy. 

"I assure you, I am more than capable of making sure any _virture_ I have remaining stays unassailed," Hecate said dryly. Pippa nearly choked on her drink at the implication. Was Hecate really saying...? Was Hecate flirting with her? It was a question she had asked herself more and more lately. It was another part of the reason she was pushing herself to tell Hecate how she felt. 

Pippa coughed. "Yes, well, I'm sure you are." She settled back in her chair and made her opening move. She always felt that the first move her pawn made was rather arbitrary. Maybe that was why Hecate beat her half the time. She saw their games together more as an excuse to spend time with the Hecate rather than a real competition. She suspected maybe Hecate felt the same. 

They lapsed into silence as they played each concentrating on their moves. 

"You've really had no incidents with the mistletoe?" Hecate asked into the silence. 

"Well, we did find two of our older students, Brandon and Henry, making out under a bit that was in a shadowed area. But I don't think it really had anything to do with the decorations. We'd have caught them somewhere even without the excuse. Young love." Pippa briefly raised her eyebrows as if to say, "what can you do?"

"I'm familiar with the emotion." Hecate made a move and Pippa scowled as she had to rethink her strategy. 

"And just who did you fancy when you were young? I don't recall you ever mentioning anyone." Pippa couldn't stop the smile on her face. Had Hecate really had a crush on someone and kept it a secret? She was certain they had told each other everything but the way Hecate was turning red meant there was a story there if only Pippa could get her to spill it. 

"That isn't… I simply meant…" Hecate sputtered. "I'm familiar with it from my own teaching experience." 

Oh, Hecate had definitely had a crush on someone when they were in school and Pippa wasn't going to let Hecate off the hook that easily. "I don't believe you. I think you fancied someone and you've kept it to yourself all of these years. As your oldest friend, I demand that you tell me who it was." 

"I don't know what you're talking about. And even if I did fancy someone, it was decades ago. It's hardly relevant now," Hecate deflected and something in her voice sobered Pippa. 

"Alright, I'll let you have your secret. For now at least." Pippa narrowed her eyes playfully. "And I believe that's checkmate," she said as she moved her rook. Hecate looked down at the chessboard bewildered.

"When did you do that?" Hecate asked. 

"Oh, about three moves ago. When you were being distracted by your crush." Pippa settled more comfortably in her chair. It was now or never. Pippa took a deep breath. 

"Hecate, there's something I've…"

"You don't mind if I stay here for the night, do you?" Pippa fell silent as Hecate interrupted her. 

"Of course not. You know you always have a room here." Pippa smiled gently. Maybe this wasn't the night for grand pronouncements. Maybe she could convince Hecate to spend yuletide with her and she could tell her then. That seemed fitting. A time to end one aspect of their relationship and replace it with something new.

"Let me walk you there?" Pippa stood. Hecate nodded her acquiescence and joined Pippa on her feet. 

“Certainly.” Hecate walked to the door and held it open for Pippa. They walked quietly down the corridors mindful of the students sleeping nearby. Pippa caught Hecate’s hand in hers once again. Hecate brought it up to the bend in her elbow and they walked arm in arm. Pippa sighed. She needed to just do it. 

“Is everything alright?” Hecate asked as they approached her door. 

“Yes.” Pippa paused. “No.” 

She tried to collect herself, took a deep breath, and squared her shoulders. “There was something I wanted to talk to you about.”

Hecate regarded her seriously. “I hope you know you can talk to me about anything.” 

“I hope so– oh,” Pippa looked up above Hecate’s door to where a rather conspicuous sprig of mistletoe hung. Hecate followed her line of sight, her eyes widening when she saw what Pippa was looking at. For some reason, Hecate was blushing. 

"Did you put that there?" she asked. 

"You know I wouldn't,” Pippa replied. Maybe this was a chance to test the waters. “Still, I know how much you like tradition. It would be a shame to break it." Pippa smiled softly, mischievously. 

"What are you saying?" Hecate replied warily. She looked at Pippa in mild panic. 

"I'm saying… May I kiss you?" Pippa tried to keep the hope from her voice. 

"I… I suppose so." Hecate braced herself as if something truly unpleasant was about to happen. 

Pippa looked at her in concern. “You know you don’t have to do this just to make me happy.” She didn’t want to force a kiss on Hecate, even a relatively innocent one. Maybe telling Hecate about her feelings was a bad idea. 

“No, no. It’s fine. I want…” Hecate looked like she was having trouble expressing herself. Pippa felt the need to rescue her. 

“Alright.” Pippa reached out and placed a steadying hand on Hecate’s arm. She leaned in slowly and kissed Hecate’s cheek. As soon as her lips made contact, a full body shudder ran through Hecate. Hecate was practically vibrating while she worked to contain something. Pippa wasn’t sure what it might be but now that she was so near Hecate, she didn’t want to pull away. Hecate wasn’t pulling away either. They stayed there together breathing in the same air, hovering close. Maybe Pippa didn’t need to tell Hecate her feelings. Maybe she could just show her. 

“Hecate.” Pippa ducked her head slightly. 

“Yes?”

“May I kiss you again?” She lifted her eyes and met Hecate’s. The moment stretched out tremulously between them. 

“I…” Hecate started to say but she seemed to lose the ability to speak. Instead, she nodded, her head jerking up and down.

This time Pippa didn't kiss her cheek. She turned her head in and caught Hecate’s lips with her own. Hecate tentatively returned the kiss, her lips moving against Pippa’s. The kiss only lasted a moment but Pippa’s breath was caught in her throat anyway. 

“Was that alright?” Pippa’s voice trembled. 

Hecate licked her lips but still didn’t move away. “You know, traditionally mistletoe grants one kiss for each of the berries it contains.” She reached up and plucked one of the berries from its stem. There were still two left. 

“Really?” Pippa breathed out. Could Hecate be saying what she thought she was? Hecate nodded once. This time Hecate leaned in and initiated the kiss. Pippa gasped as she felt Hecate’s tongue against her lips but once again the kiss ended too soon. 

Pippa placed her hands on Hecate’s chest before running them up to her shoulders and then her neck. She cupped the sides of Hecate’s neck, rubbed her thumbs over the skin there. She kissed Hecate again but refused to back away. Instead, she pressed closer molding the front of her body to Hecate’s and holding Hecate in place as they kissed. This kiss continued on and on, lips brushing against lips over and over again, tongue moving against tongue. The kiss stayed soft, ending minutes after it had begun. 

“Should we talk about this?” Hecate asked before lightly kissing Pippa again. 

Pippa nodded. “Perhaps not in the corridor though.” 

Hecate startled as if she only then remembered where they were. “No, perhaps not.” She opened the door to her room and held it open for Pippa. Soon the door was closed behind them. 

Across the hallway, tucked behind a low wall, two Pentangle’s students silently high-pented each other. They hoped their headmistress liked her Christmas present. Now they just needed to send a message via maglet to their contacts at Cackle’s telling them the plan had worked. A quick scribble and tap later, they were sneaking through the corridors and back to their rooms.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are the best!
> 
> I'm on tumblr @twtd11


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